New tour to show revitalized downtown

Maps, guides will be stationed along route for first day of tour

Published: Friday, Oct. 11, 2013 1:15 a.m. CST

Caption

(Philip Marruffo/pmarruffo@saukvalley.com)

Restoration work has been done at the former home of Dr. Moses Royer, since it was bought by Scott Hibbard. The Royer home will be one of the featured stops on Sterling Main Street's historical architecture tour of downtown Sterling starting Saturday.

BY MATT MENCARINI
mmencarini@saukvalley.com
800-798-4085, ext. 529

STERLING – Sterling Main Street wants residents to be tourists in their own city.

Starting Saturday, residents can take a self-guided walking tour of 20 historic architectural highlights of downtown Sterling. It’s the first time Sterling has had such a walking tour in 7 or 8 years, said Sterling Main Street Director Janna Groharing.

“There’s a lot of buildings that have been restored and renovated,” Groharing said. “We thought it was a good time to show the revitalization that’s been going on downtown.”

In addition to the 20 stops on Main Street’s walking tour, three buildings will be open to the public and have owners or representatives there to show residents around. Tour maps will be available at the Sterling Farmers Market from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and there will be tour guides along the route as well.

The Royer Home, 401 E. Second St.; the Big Red Church, 311 Second Ave.; and the Masonic Temple, 111 W. Third St., will be open to the public from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

After Saturday, maps will be available at the Sterling Main Street office, 318 First Ave., or the Sauk Valley Area Chamber of Commerce, 211 Locust St. in Sterling.

Tour guides and buildings open to the public will be available only on Saturday, the first day of the new program.

The stops

There are 20 stops on Sterling Main Street's walking tour of downtown:

• The Moses Royer Home, 401 E. Second St.

• Sterling Coliseum, 212 Third Ave.

• Central Park, West Fourth Street at Brinks Circle

• Sterling Daily Gazette Building, 312 Second Ave.

• First Congregational Church, 311 Second Ave.

• Reitzel Building and Commercial Block, 202-210 E. Third St.

• Lawrence Building, 101 E. Third St.

• Central Trust and Savings Bank, 302 First Ave.

• First Sterling National Bank, 22 E. Third St.

• First National Bank, 15 E. Third St.

• Clark, Giddings & Co., 11 E. Third St.

• Sterling National Bank and Chester's Department Store, 14 E. Third St.